What does it mean to be a good Muslim? How can observant Muslims help their children to understand the nuanced tenets of Islam, separate from the current messages of violence and extremism being perpetuated by ISIS and other radical groups? For Omar Saif Ghobash, the United Arab Emirates ambassador to Russia and the father of two teenage sons, these questions are particularly pressing. In his first book, Letters to a Young Muslim, Ghobash shares a series of thoughtful, engaging, deeply personal reflections on his journey with Islam and what it means to be a Muslim in the modern world.
Ghobash draws on his own experiences to explore the issues facing Islam and the Arab world: the prevalence of violence (his own father died a violent death when Ghobash was young); the segregation of the sexes and discrimination against women; the conflict between radical Islamists and other Muslims. He asks the book's central question in several ways: "How should you and I take responsibility for our lives as Muslims?" While Ghobash always lands on the side of openness and critical thinking, he urges his sons to decide for themselves on all these issues. "Remember that knowledge does not consist simply of answers," he says. "Great knowledge consists of being familiar with the questions, the doubts, the possibility that things might be different."
In a time of global fear and upheaval, Ghobash's letters provide a vital glimpse into Islam and a wise, balanced series of questions for Muslims and non-Muslims alike. --Katie Noah Gibson, blogger at Cakes, Tea and Dreams